Where Loyalty Lies
by SisterDear
Summary: AU- Kaoru is human. Kenshin is not. Yet they find that they have something in common- both are running from pasts that threaten to devour them. (Rated for violence, some language in future chapters) Ch 2 up
1. Prologue

Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin- I only play with the characters.

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A strangled cry of rage tore through the forest. The thundering rain nearly drowned the sound out as it pummeled furiously onto the forest below, as if angry for some unknown offense. Dense leaves caught the liquid and flung it off again as howling wind ripped through the trees. The water that did manage to pound its way through the canopy of trees fell onto the foliage below or spattered into the mud puddles that littered the ground.

All normal sounds of a normal spring storm, save for one thing.

Another shout rose up through the trees.

Muffled cursing and the heavy rustling of underbrush quickly followed it. The smaller inhabitants of the forest fled as a figure stumbled into a small clearing among the foliage. His chest heaved in time with heavy, chugging breaths. Yellow eyes darted about, fiercely searching. He exuded fear itself, a red demon plaguing the forest with his searing presence. His red claws flexed; rain splattered onto red skin and drooping ears. The pounding water mimicked the sound of rain on leaves as it hit his leathery blood-red wings. Nothing with a heartbeat was foolish enough to stay anywhere near him; though upon close inspection it became obvious that he was injured. Numerous lacerations could be seen oozing blood under his tattered clothing. If he noticed, he gave no indication of it. By all appearances, he was a creature escaped from the underworld.

He was running for his life.

Another figure burst noisily into the small clearing. If the first creature was a demon, this one resembled a cyborg. Both of his hands, as well as his right eye, were mechanical. Even his thick tail had been mostly covered in metal parts. The thing that drew the eye the most, however, was the tall metal crest that sprouted from his head. It took the place of hair, the front edge sweeping up and away from his forehead to form a cluster of sharp points at least two feet high.

This monster carried a sword already lightly speckled with the blood of his prey. He spotted his quarry in the clearing instantly and lunged forward with a wordless yell, intent on coating every inch of his silver blade in the lifeblood of the other.

With a great thrust of his wings, the first shot upward. Muttered curses drifted up from below him as his assailant tried frantically to locate him. The red demon reached a peak, hanging in the air for one frozen moment.

The moment ended.

Wings snapped shut tightly against his back and the demon plummeted back down towards the earth. The monster on the ground looked up just in time, raising his sword with a startled cry. Claws raked across metal, the harsh clashing reverberating through the soaked clearing. A grunt of effort, and the one holding the sword pushed away the winged creature. Using the shove as a launch, the demon flipped backwards, landing in a crouch several feet away. The metal monster didn't wait for him to recover, attacking again instantly. The demon jerked to the side, one clawed hand going to his hip in reflex, as if reaching for a sword. He growled in frustration when his claws met nothing but air. The sword was no longer there and he mentally cursed the person responsible for its absence. Unaccustomed to fighting with only his claws and agility, he was at a slight disadvantage offensively, a fact of which his heavily armed attacker was taking full advantage.

His eyes raked over his opponent again. The tall monster carried not only the katana that he was currently using, but also had various kinds of swords strapped to every conceivable spot of his body. He most likely had some hidden inside the mechanical portions of his body as well.

The red creature shot forward; trying, not for the first time, to get close enough to steal one of his opponent's many swords. The heavy tail lashed out at him. He dodged aside again and barely managed to keep himself from tripping. He shook his head, trying to rid himself of the dizziness. Damn cyborg. Every time he got close, the monster did _something _that messed with his ears. It was playing havoc with his sense of balance. Attacks that he should be able to avoid easily were leaving him with a myriad of scratches- minor scratches, yes, but still…

He flipped backwards again, becoming aware of a long clearing at his back.

A chuckle. A _chuckle?! _His attention shot forward. That monster was laughing at him? _No one _laughed at _him_! Amber eyes narrowed. How in all heaven had it come to the point that his opponents _laughed_ at him? Muscles flexed as he sank into a crouch.

He was tired, angry, weaponless. Time to end this. He would be in his element in that open space that he sensed at his back, where there would be room to use his wings fully.

The next round of attacks came. He began giving ground. The clearing came closer, closer… The pair burst from the last layer of trees onto a road.

Too late, the demon realized his mistake. The rain, previously somewhat tempered by the trees, now fell with unhindered fury upon the two invaders of the forest. Whereas windy days usually put the demon in his element, allowing him to fly higher and faster with less effort, today the heavy gusts were a severe hindrance. When he reflexively opened his wings to steady himself, the wind caught the membranous sails and knocked him around.

The hissing swoosh of rain upon flying metal assaulted his ears as his antagonist switched to a nearly silent attack. The red creature's wings snapped open, ready to jerk him aside. The wind chose that moment to send an even stronger billow ripping through the tunnel formed by the tree-lined road. It slammed into him, jerking him around. The blade that had been aiming for his heart was imbedded in his shoulder instead. He hissed, reaching up to jerk out the short knife that his opponent had thrown. The wind blew around again, knocking him off balance and keeping him from hearing the next coming attack. Movement caught his eye just in time and he twisted to the side. He yanked the dirk from his shoulder and used it to block one of his opponent's oncoming blades. However, he didn't move fast enough to block the lower of the simultaneous attacks. The sword in his opponent's right hand plunged into his side.

He stumbled backwards as his opponent kicked him square in the chest to free his sword. The bloodied katana was raised for a final blow when a sound thrummed through the rain. A car was approaching on the road. The swordsman hesitated, glancing at his staggering prey. The sound of the approaching vehicle grew louder and he made his decision, turning and leaping into the trees.

The wounded creature took in a ragged breath, struggling to remain upright. He couldn't fall here, in the middle of a road! Not like this… he could not afford for anyone to see him like this!

His vision went black as the wet road rushed up to meet him.

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Another's Note: I know, I didn't name either of the characters, but if you can't figure out who they are, don't worry, their names will be given later!

Comments and criticisms are both greatly appreciated, as I do hope to improve my writing with this story.


	2. Strangers on a Road

Here it is! The first real chapter- let the fun begin!

Italics are thoughts. 

Disclaimer: Not mine.

-Click- The door slid softly shut. Kaoru Kamiya made sure it had locked, then stepped away from her house. She glanced upwards, surprised to feel a light misting rain. The early morning sky was mostly a clear purple-blue. She scowled at the small lone cloud that seemed farther away than the dampness on her skin would indicate.

She jogged nervously to her truck and set her last packing box heavily in the back. After quickly securing it next to the few other boxes already there, she jumped into the driver's seat and pressed her thumb to the starter pad. "Engine on," she said. The small vehicle came to life, the soft, purring hum of the engine subtly vibrating up through the seats. She drove away hurriedly, not looking back. She would not be returning for some time. 

Her home was on the edge of the city, so it only took her a few anxious minutes to leave the well-traveled roads behind. After another hour she had passed the last of the suburbs as well. But even as traffic thinned and then disappeared altogether, she stayed tense, her hands gripping the controls so tightly that they cramped. The metropolis behind her held danger. It would not take those chasing her long to realize that the possessions she had left in her house were merely for appearance. Everything of importance was gone, most of it in the back of the nondescript forest green truck that she was driving now. She was running, speeding towards a large stretch of uninhabited mountains and forests that still covered much of the planet Suiran. 

The miles between her and civilization increased steadily, but that did little to lessen the tension and worry that kept her tired senses painfully alert. How long did she have? Did they take the bait that she had left? Had they already seen through what seemed to her like a painfully obvious attempt at distraction? Someone might already be ahead of her, waiting. 

The purple-blue sky above her became increasingly gray, as if to match her mood. By the time she entered the mountainous Northern Forest in the late afternoon, the heavens opened and Kaoru found herself driving through a downpour. The heavy rain made it difficult to see, forcing her to slow her speed on the treacherously windy forest road. She took a deep, calming breath and forced her shoulders to relax slightly. How was it possible to be so tired yet still so tense? 

A shape in the middle of her path snapped her attention back to the road. Kaoru slammed on the brakes. A part of her mind was glad that the truck had not hydroplaned on the wet road. However, most of her mind was focused on the thing that was blocking her path- a body. She brought the truck to a stop, all senses on the alert and every vestige of exhaustion gone. Through the heavy rain, she couldn't even tell what species the shape in front of her was. All she could see was that it was lying in such a way that blocked a good portion of the narrow road. Trees and boulders came right up to the road on either side of her. She couldn't go around, and she wasn't about to simply drive _over _it. Kaoru hesitated. It could be a trap. Or the thing could be dead. Or it could be innocent, alive and injured. Her conscience wouldn't let her risk the latter. She turned off the engine and reached behind her seat to grab her kanabou. It looked like nothing more than a sword handle of some sort: a metallic stick about as long as her forearm. However, at the press of a button, it would lengthen into a blunt rod about a meter long. The paralyzing electricity that ran through the end segment made it an effective non-lethal defense tool. It was the only weapon she ever carried. 

She held it at the ready as she pushed open her truck door and stepped warily outside. Her high black ponytail quickly became thoroughly soaked, clumps of hair sticking to her face and neck. She shivered, berating herself for not taking the time to put her coat in the truck. The sleeveless shirt that she was wearing was not doing much to keep off the rain. She closed the truck door and waited a beat until she heard the lock click into place. No sense in falling victim to an attempt to steal her only means of transportation.

Kaoru approached the still form cautiously, eyes and ears probing the surrounding forest as best she could through the downpour. When she was only a few feet away, she could finally make out more of the body's details. The creature was wearing a tattered reddish shirt. Long sunset-red hair lay limply in the mud and covered the face. It appeared to be human, but that didn't really mean anything. You didn't necessarily have to be human to look like one. She moved forward a little more and then jerked back suddenly, biting down a shriek. The shirt was not red. It was bloody. The person was covered in the sticky liquid. It ran in thin rivers down the bare arms. Splotchy stains of it covered most of what had once been an off-white shirt. The blood-dyed cloth was darkest on the shoulder and the side of the torso that was next to the ground, where she suspected major wounds to be. Somehow, the downpour had not washed the blood away. 

_Just check and see if there's a pulse._ She kept herself from thinking about what she would have to do if there was one.

Looking back, Kaoru would never be able to recall exactly what had happened next. She had taken one last step forward and started to kneel, hand outstretched to check for a heartbeat. In the next instant she was jerked backwards, slamming into a large form. She felt a blade press against her throat as her kanabou was wretched away. All of this happened in less time than it took a person to blink. Kaoru froze, breath hitching in her chest. _What?_

"I suggest you hold very still, girl." A male voice rumbled from behind and above her. Not seeing any other options at the moment, Kaoru obeyed. 

Long black hair that was not her own fell into her face and the large, hard chest that her head was pressed against shifted minutely as her captor leaned forward slightly to get a better view of the bloody body on the road in front of them. 

"You didn't do that to him. He wouldn't get that beat up by a little thing like you." Now that she hadn't been expecting. For a moment she forgot about the sharp point at her neck and pushed herself angrily away from her attacker, whipping around to glare at the man, a sharp retort on her lips. It died as she felt the sword quickly follow her movements and realized that it was only the lightning fast reflexes of the person holding the blade that had saved her. A slight blush worked its way onto her cheeks.  _Stupid, stupid, stupid. _

Her mind worked away from its self-berating and she realized that she was staring at a sheathed sword and an empty sheath that hung on her attacker's hip. Her gaze moved to the muscular waist that led up to an equally sculpted chest. Broad shoulders were covered by a long white cloak, upon which long ebony hair hung in sharp contrast. Her eyes finally made their way to his face. The blush deepened, anger sparking in her blue eyes. He was studying her just as openly, a smirk upon his face. His onyx eyes amplified the arrogance of his expression as they watched her devilishly from their superior height.

"I realize you'd like to fawn on my good looks for a while more but the idiot behind you needs attended to." Kaoru bristled again but he gave her no chance to reply, as he was already moving around her. "What fix did you manage to get yourself into this time, baka deshi? I wasn't gone that long," he muttered to himself.

Kaoru frowned, eyes flickering in thought. _Baka deshi? Those were words from the Shifter's language. And if this big oaf was not human, she was willing to bet that the other one wasn't, either. At least that would explain why the blood had not washed away. Shifters quite literally had thick blood._

Still keeping his sword at Kaoru's neck, the man knelt by the bloodied person on the ground. He pushed on a shoulder, rolling the unconscious form onto its back. Kaoru could now see that it was a man, though an admittedly small one. "Kenshin," the white-cloaked swordsman said sharply, slapping the smaller person's face. Receiving no response, he grumbled "Baka deshi," and scooped the bloody young man up in his left arm. Standing up, he jerked his head towards Kaoru's truck. "Open the passenger side door," he commanded. 

She started. "What? No way!"

His eyes narrowed. "Girl, I do not have time for this. Open it. Now."

"No." Kaoru crossed her arms and glared right back, her sapphire eyes flashing angrily. She had had just about enough of this guy. No stranger was going to tell her what to do, especially not one as rude as this. Even if he was holding a blade to her throat.

One of the swordsman's eyebrows arched. Most women tripped over themselves in their efforts to please him. Most women would do almost anything to coax his smirking smile into the open. Most women never went against what he told them to do. Not this one. She was no taller than his own rather petite student, but her temper and her will rivaled his own cunning. _Fat chance. No girl is going to outwit Hiko_ Seijuro.__

"Look, girl. I need to get these wounds cleaned up. I am not going to do it here because his attacker could still be close by. So unless you want to risk having the death of this idiot on your conscious, open the door!"

Kaoru seethed. She knew exactly what game he was trying to play with her mind. The thing was, it was working. The bloody man clearly did need medical attention. Even if her heart had been hard enough to let her leave, there was still the issue of who was holding the weapons. Fisting her hands tightly, Kaoru spun around and marched through the rain to the truck. 

Behind her, Hiko smirked. Compassion got them every time. 

Kaoru pressed her thumb to the lock pad, unlocking the passenger door and opening it. Hiko was right behind her. "Get in." She obeyed, dripping water everywhere as she slid across the bench style seat to the drivers' side. Hiko set his burden on the seat. Not taking his eyes off Kaoru, he sheathed his sword and climbed in as well, pushing the other man's unconscious form to the middle. He shut the door, making sure that his cape was all the way in. "Get going." He ordered Kaoru. She sighed. _No point in resisting now._

As soon as they were moving, Hiko began to examine his "baka deshi's" wounds. He twisted his large body awkwardly in Kaoru's small truck. The vehicle would have been crowded if it were just occupied by himself and Kaoru. With a third body between them, it was downright cramped. All three of them were drenched in water and smeared with blood, thanks to their close proximity to each other. The trucks interior climate control was working at it's top to get rid of the water, but she would have to remove the bloodstains herself. 

Kaoru glanced sideways at her passengers. The man was pushing the other's long hair aside to get a better look at a head wound that had drenched half of his face and neck in blood. Kaoru drew in a surprised breath as she caught sight of a large cross-shaped scar. 

"Keep your eyes on the road." Hiko ordered, noticing where her eyes were directed.

She quickly averted her gaze. "You can't treat all those wounds in here. There isn't enough room to clean him up."

"Which is why you're going to stop in a while when we get to a suitable place." 

Kaoru bristled, looking for any chance to snap at the irksome man. "First you tell me to drive, then you tell me that we're going to stop. Make up your mind!"

He ignored her comment. "Do you have any bandages in here?"

"The box under your seat." He pulled it out and opened it, then gaped at the contents. 

"Are you extremely paranoid or do you get injured on a regular basis?"

Kaoru huffed. "You don't have to go randomly insulting me. You haven't even introduced yourself." 

He arched another eyebrow at the less than subtle attempt to change the subject, but answered her question anyway. "I am Hiko Seijuro the Thirteenth. This worthless lump," he gestured at the bloodied young man slumped between them, "is my student Kenshin." 

_The Thirteenth of what? _"You do realize that insulting every person you come in contact with is a good way to make people dislike you?"

His smirk returned. "Actually, I find that most people can't resist me."

She rolled her eyes. When it looked like she wasn't going to say anything more, he prompted "And you are…"

"Kaoru," she said quickly, somewhat embarrassed at her faux pas. Then again, why bother being polite to the guy? He was arrogant, rude, irritating as all get out…

They continued to drive through the pounding rain, heading further up the mountain. 

~~~

Half an hour later, Hiko told Kaoru to turn onto a small road that ran into the forest. After a few minutes of bumping along on what was essentially a wide dirt path, they stopped at a small clearing with a stream running alongside it. Kaoru didn't ask how Hiko had known of the well-hidden location's presence. 

Kaoru parked the truck at the edge of the clearing. She hoped that Hiko would simply step out of the truck, take his apprentice, and let her leave. No such luck.

"Get out," Hiko said, making no move to do so himself. Kaoru glared at him for what seemed like the umpteenth time. Sure, just get out and leave him to steal her most important possessions. But, he had yet to give her weapon back, and she doubted he would have room to crawl over that Kenshin to get at the controls if he did have theft in mind. She pushed her door open. At least it had stopped raining.

As soon as she had stepped to the ground, Hiko opened his door. He easily carried Kenshin out with him and laid his student on the ground several feet from the truck. 

Kaoru studied him as he carefully checked to make sure none of the wounds had started bleeding again. For all his bluster, he did seem to be genuinely concerned about his student. "I have some blankets and other supplies in the back." Kaoru found herself offering. 

Hiko stood up. "Show me," he ordered, moving toward the truck bed, his hand resting on the hilt of one of his swords. He noticed her insulted look and snorted.  

"I'm not stupid, girl. Some of those 'supplies' could be other weapons." Wordlessly, Kaoru stalked to the truck and swung herself into the back. She dug around until she found the box with blankets and other medical supplies. 

"Take this." Kaoru shoved the box at Hiko, and then rooted around some more until she found the box of food supplies. "There's a water boiler in here," she explained to him as she climbed back out of the truck bed, lugging the package behind her. 

He nodded his approval and waited for her to climb completely out of the truck before turning and striding over to his unconscious student. 

"Hasn't he been out for a long time?" she asked, setting the box that she carried near the one he had set down. 

"Get that heater out and fill it at the stream." He said shortly, ignoring her question and turning his attention to the redhead on the ground in front of him. Kaoru, already getting used to having him leave her questions unanswered, obeyed. 

By the time she got back, Hiko had stripped off Kenshin's shirt and gotten the supplies that he needed ready. For the first time, Kaoru got a good look at the bloodied man whom she had nearly run over. He was indeed petite, probably not much taller than Kaoru herself. The long unbound hair that fell down to the small of his back accentuated his effeminate features. He could nearly have passed for a girl, if not for the cross-shaped scar that marred his left cheek and the power that his body exuded even while unconscious. 

Aside from the cut on his temple, his wounds were mostly limited to his chest and arms, which were laced with scratches. The most serious injuries were the stab wounds in his left shoulder and side. There was blood on his pant legs as well, though not enough for those injuries to be anything more than a few small cuts. 

She was jolted from her examination by Hiko's voice. "Hey, girl. He's not that attractive. And you're in my way. Is the water done heating yet?" Kaoru felt the heat rush to her cheeks and quickly moved away to drag the pot of water nearer. 

"Quit calling me girl," she muttered. Was that smirk permanently fixed to his face?

~~~

Some time later, Kaoru climbed into the bed of her truck and squatted down on her heels with a tired sigh. Kenshin's many wounds were finally cleansed and bound to Hiko's liking, and they had moved him to the only bedroll Kaoru had with her. Hiko had told Kaoru to take care of dinner while he cleaned up their makeshift emergency room. _Make dinner. Just like that. As if he's been giving orders to me for years. Kaoru fumed silently to herself as she located the box that contained the instant meals she always kept handy when traveling. She usually managed to either burn or undercook them, but they still turned out better than her homemade attempts at the culinary arts. _

They ate the meal in silence. Kaoru was worried and brooding. Hiko seemed indifferent to everything around him, picking at his slightly burned dinner and taking an occasional swig of whatever was in the alcohol container that he carried on his belt. And Kenshin continued to drift in the land of the unconscious, a silent form in the background.

Kaoru sighed and started collecting the remains of her dinner. Hiko would most likely want her to pick up his trash as well, she mused. If he told her to, she might just ignore him out of spite. But before she could get up, she heard a shuffling noise. Her gaze whipped around to stare in the direction that Hiko was already looking. 

Kenshin was sitting up on the bedroll, a hand to the bandage on his temple. Kaoru glanced back at Hiko, but he seemed content to just sit there, watching silently with an unreadable expression upon his face. She turned her gaze back to Kenshin, who was now eyeing the truck, only a few feet away from him. "Ummm, excuse me?" she asked, trying to get his attention and end the uncomfortable silence that the forest seemed to have been cast into. At her voice, his hand flew towards his hip in a reflexive gesture and his head jerked up, as if she had jolted him out of a reverie. He turned his gaze toward her, and Kaoru saw his eyes fully for the first time.

She gasped and jerked away as he looked directly at her. His eyes were golden yellow, burning with a cold, deadly light. She froze, the hairs on the back of her neck prickling as his piercing eyes bored into hers, seeming to impale her very soul with their calculating glare. 

"Baka deshi!" Hiko's harsh intruding voice raked across her senses. Kenshin broke eye contact with her to glare instead at his master. Kaoru's breath drew in with a sharp gasp, her heart racing and her limbs starting to tremble. She had the sensation that she had just stared death in the face and shouldn't have survived. 

"Don't call me that." A low, husky voice growled. It took Kaoru a moment to realize that it was Kenshin who had spoken, and another moment to realize that the command had been in reply to Hiko.

"Your eyes are still yellow, baka deshi. You're scaring the girl." Hiko said, ignoring Kenshin's demand. Kenshin frowned in confusion, then glanced at the girl again. Hiko was right. She was breathing as if she had just run a marathon, and her feet seemed rooted to the ground. Kenshin's injury-numbed brain finally put two and two together and he realized that such a reaction was usually not thought of as normal. 

Kaoru's breath caught again as his amber eyes returned to hers. But something was different about his gaze this time. It wasn't so cold. She stared, transfixed, as his eyes shifted from yellow to a gentler gold-tinged violet. They were still sullen and a bit angry, but she no longer felt as if she should be prostrate on the ground and begging for her life. 

Kaoru's mind was whirling. Kenshin's change in eye color proved that her suspicions had been right on the money. Kenshin was a Shifter. They were a species that could change the appearance of their body at will, taking the form of almost any living thing. There were very few on Suiran, so she had never actually knowingly met one. They tended to stay on their home planet, fighting a never-ending war with their rival species, the Hantoumei. The fact that he was a Shifter would also explain the length of his unconsciousness. Shifters could recover from injury very quickly, however the flip side was that they stayed unconscious for longer than the average human.

Hiko said something, snapping her mind back to the present. "You're leaving? Are you taking him with you?" She couldn't keep the slight tinge of hope from her voice. 

He smirked. Again. She was getting really tired of seeing that expression on his face. "I know you're disappointed. Don't worry, I'll come back; you won't have to live without me for long. Baka deshi, you stay here and try not to get yourself hurt again. She'll stay with you to make sure." 

"No."

"Nani?" Hiko had the audacity to actually sound surprised at Kaoru's flat refusal. She clenched her fists, her knuckles whitening. 

"In case you weren't aware, I was going somewhere before I picked up you two vagabonds. I still plan on going there. I am not staying here any longer than it takes to collect my things." _All of them,_ she added mentally, thinking of the kanabou that Hiko still had hidden somewhere on his persona.

"Fine. Kenshin will go with you."

That got both of their attentions. "What!" Faces of dismay and surprise accompanied their twin exclamations. 

"No way." Kaoru shook her head emphatically. Hiko's attitude was hard enough to put up with, but Kenshin was downright creepy, even without the yellow eyes. She did not want to be stuck in a truck with him for hours on end. And there was still the matter of the danger she had fled her home from. It was quite possible that these two were working for _them, _though she was having doubts as to that. In her past experience, those people tended to be more direct in their actions against her. And from what she knew of them, they were not the type to have Shifters in their employ.

Kenshin gave his master a betrayed scowl. Stuck with some little human girl who couldn't even look at him without flinching… scratch that. She was giving him an openly challenging glare that made him want to be in her presence even less. Exasperated, he ran a hand through the long hair that fell down around his shoulders, still somewhat damp from it's thorough soaking earlier. 

"I'm not staying with her." Kaoru noted absently that Kenshin's voice was different than it had been a few moments ago. Though still somewhat cold, it had warmed to a subtly higher pitch. The change seemed to match his new eye color. 

"It's not my fault that you got yourself injured. I've been training you for years, baka deshi! There is nothing wrong with my teaching methods, so don't even think about blaming me for your accidents."

Kenshin's head jerked up.  "You left me in the middle of the forest with absolutely nothing! You just took my katana, said 'stay here,' and left without an explanation!"

"And you clearly didn't obey me, as I left you far away from any roads. Besides, you didn't want that sword anymore, remember? Some nonsense about an oath? So I got you one that you can use."

This took Kenshin aback. "Nani?"

"Take this." Hiko tossed Kenshin the second sword that he had been carrying. Kenshin caught it, hesitant disbelief evident in his eyes. "Shishou…"

"Look at it, baka deshi."

Unsure, Kenshin pulled the sword out of its sheath a few inches. He started, then completely unsheathed it, just to be sure. Kaoru spoke aloud what he had seen. "The blade is on the wrong side."

Hiko straightened his clothing smugly. "I told you I could take care of it. Try living with that thing by your side. We'll see how seriously you take that oath of yours."

Kenshin said nothing in reply. He simply sat with his head bowed, staring at the sword in his hands.  

"Take this, too." Hiko waved Kaoru's kanabou under Kenshin's nose. Kenshin took it, genuinely confused this time. Hiko jerked his head towards Kaoru. "It's hers. You might want to keep it for a while; she's got a bit of a temper." 

Kaoru, who had been somewhat lost during most of the conversation, began sputtering angrily. "Why you, you…"

Her sentence was left unfinished, as she was being ignored once again. Hiko strode to some nearby bushes where he had draped his cape. He had washed it, along with the towels that they had used to clean Kenshin's wounds, and left it there to dry. Hiko hadn't seemed worried about the blood on the rest of his clothing, Kaoru noted, but Kami forbid that he should stain his cape. For once, his actions had not elicited any complaint from her. She had been amazed enough that he hadn't told her to do the wash. 

Hiko lifted the huge cape off of the bushes, settling it over his wide shoulders once again. He started for the woods, pausing in front of Kenshin on his way. "Baka deshi," Hiko jabbed a finger in his student's face, "protect her." Kenshin blinked at the unusual order, glancing surreptitiously at Kaoru. Why did -she- need protecting? Hiko didn't bother to explain himself but strode into the woods, quickly disappearing between the trees.

The sound of a sword and sheath snapping together brought Kaoru's attention back to her companion. "We should be going." Kenshin stated flatly. He tucked his new sword into his belt. 

"But…"

"Shishou told me to go with you, so I'm going with you. Don't bother trying to talk your way out of it." Kenshin cut off her protest. "Take this."

Confused, Kaoru took her proffered kanabou. "I thought your teacher also told you to keep this," she said against her better judgment.

"That thing would be of no use to me. And don't think you'll be able to use it to get away," he added, eyes narrowing. "I might have been injured but I can still overpower you." 

Kaoru's temper flared at the subtly insulting words, but the significant fleck of yellow in Kenshin's eyes was not lost on her. For once, she decided to say nothing, instead turning to grumpily reload her supplies. _He's just as bad as his teacher._

This was going to be a very long drive.

Japanese glossary 

kanabou- a metal rod. I don't know if this is supposed to indicate a metal rod as in a weapon or a metal rod as in something you would find in a car repair shop, but the basic definition seemed close enough to how I wanted to describe Kaoru's weapon.

Suiran- mountainous 

Hantoumei- semi- transparent. I played around with all sorts of names for this species. This one seemed the most fitting, for reasons you will discover later. 

Baka deshi- stupid apprentice

Shishou- means "master" in the martial arts (I believe it is now archaic) 

Kami- God (or would it be a god?)

Nani- what

Katana- a Japanese sword 

Other notes:

I know there's not a whole lot of action in this chapter. Don't worry, though. I'm just setting it up for some fun stuff next chapter. 

Thanks to all who reviewed! You made my day!

Crazy Girl Person- Thank you! I'm glad you thought it was interesting! 

Riverwood- Thanks! Big words are fun to use. ^_^ Yup, you were right about Kenshin and Kaoru. You'll find out who the other guy is in the next chapter. 

unique-starfish- Hey, you found my new story! I'm glad you like it! Keep up the most wonderful work on yours. 

the sacred night- Thank you! I'm glad you liked the winged person- he's the main character! (One of them, anyway.) 


	3. Memories

I'm back! Sorry this took so long, folks. Just a warning, this chapter is where we start to get into the PG-13 rating.

Disclaimer: Starlight, star bright, first star I see… *gets hit with a rotten tomato* Okay, okay! I don't own Rurouni Kenshin! 

~~~

_"Protect her." _

Why did Hiko have to use those words? Just two simple words, but they triggered memories to one of the heaviest burdens that Kenshin bore. 

Kenshin's mind carried him back to a small office, the sole piece of furniture in the room being a chair and desk covered in documents concerning the matters of war. He stared across the desk into a face made weary by years of countless battles, yet with eyes still strong and lit by the fiery passion of belief in one's cause. 

The owner of said eyes had been giving him a somewhat unwonted assignment. Instead of the usual disposal of a high-ranking officer or politician, he was being given bodyguard duty. He was not happy about this particular assignment. Usually he would have refused without a second thought, but the look of desperation in his superior's eyes had begged him to listen to the request. Kenshin had made it clear long ago that he disliked anything other than the usual assignments. He would not be asked to do this unless his leader had no other choice. 

 "Her name is Tomoe Yukishiro. She's defecting. You have to be careful; she has family that she doesn't want involved, but she thinks one of them could be catching on. Just get her back here without being seen and we'll take of getting her to a safe house. You don't need me to tell you that we almost never get defectors these days. I cannot stress enough how valuable this girl is to us. Protect her." 

Simple enough. 

She had met him at the appointed location, the smell of white plum perfume preceding her. As she approached he had seen the light glow of her species, the Hantoumei, enveloping her solemn form like violet flame. It was a glow that so often marked his enemies, his targets. It was odd to be protecting someone who bore the mark that usually resigned them to death by his hand. 

To this day, he still didn't know why he had taken the assignment. He could have refused. He should have listened to the feeling of foreboding that was setting off alarms in his mind. But at the time, it had seemed like nothing more than an assassin-turned-bodyguard meeting a charge that he didn't want. 

_"Protect her." _

Why had Hiko used those words? _What game are you trying to play, Shishou?_

His dreams were still plagued by that night. Immediately after he met his charge there had been a surprise attack. The enemy had known of the meeting place; there was no other explanation for the nearly perfect timing and coordination of the ambush. Even now, all Kenshin had to do was close his eyes and he could feel the concussion bomb going off right in front of him. Somehow, he managed to keep to his feet even as his senses were thrown into pained chaos. Stunned by the explosion, he didn't see the approaching attacker until the Hantoumei warrior was nearly on top of them. He grabbed a hold of Tomoe's arm in an effort to pull her out of the way. One heave of his leathery wings jerked them both backwards several meters. They stopped only as his reverse momentum sent him crashing heavily into a wall. Her body had continued flying forwards, slamming into him and shoving his left hand upwards. One of his own claws raked across his cheek, leaving a long gash from his chin to his eye that immediately began to weep thick, dark blood. 

The warrior was still coming. Kenshin shoved Tomoe behind him. She clung frantically to the side of the dirty building in an effort to keep her balance. The Hantoumei's blade came down in a high arc. Kenshin met the sword with his own, causing their two blades to interlock. A flick of his wrist separated their swords, and another quick motion sent a stab deep into his unprepared opponent's heart. Blood spurted over Kenshin's sword, splattering onto his hands and chest. He paid it no attention. He had long ago learned that his job required that he not to allow himself to notice things like that.

Five more warriors fell before there was a slight pause in the attack. Kenshin saw his opening. Sword still grasped tightly in his right hand, he wrapped his left arm around the girl's waist, preparing to flee. Under normal circumstances he would have stayed and fought until every one of his opponents was dead, but tonight the safety of his charge came first. He had to get her out of there. After a quick grunt of effort they were in the air, Kenshin straining against their combined weights to get above the buildings. He could feel the fear radiating from the girl's body, yet when he glanced at her face her expression was perfectly impassive, as if she was used to being carried through the air with only a blood slicked arm keeping her from plunging to her death. Outwardly, she hid her fear well. Respect for the girl flickered in the back of his mind. "Don't pass out," he grunted at her, "If you pass out you could go transparent and you'd fall." She only nodded, tightening her grip around his neck. 

They almost made it. They were quickly approaching the edge of the highest building, a marker of relative safety, when Kenshin heard a slight noise above them. He looked up- straight into a second bomb, dropped by another Hantoumei standing at the building's edge. His vision exploded into painful colors and the steady rhythm of his wings faltered. Vaguely, he felt the girl slipping from his grasp. His grip tightened on her clothing and he tried to pull her back towards himself, twisting his body around, trying to get himself underneath her to protect her from the worst of the coming impact. It came sooner than he expected and he failed to get completely twisted around, landing instead on his side, the breath knocked from him. Tomoe's shoulders crashed heavily onto the one arm he had managed to keep underneath her. A choked gurgle made him open his eyes. His vision swam and he struggled against the pain, forcing his eyes to come into focus. He stiffened in horror when he finally realized what he was seeing. The girl had landed on her back. Kenshin's right hand had somehow managed to keep its grip on his sword during the explosion, and it had swung around as they fell. The cold, bloodstained metal was now buried deep in her chest, the blade scraping the ground beneath her. Blood trickled from her mouth as she drew in a last ragged gasp. Kenshin stared at her dumbly, stunned. His own heart seemed to stop as her heartbeat slowed, her eyes sliding closed as she died. 

Shouts drawing quickly nearer finally worked their way into his consciousness. Kenshin snatched his hand from under Tomoe's body as if the touch burned him. He stood swiftly, becoming aware of a second cut stinging his cheek, intersecting the first one. Some flying shrapnel must have hit him sometime during his fall. He jerked his sword from the girl's chest, flinching involuntarily as her torso rose with it before flopping lifelessly back to the ground as the blade came free. Kenshin lifted the blade quickly, preparing to fling the blood and gore off of the metal, when he froze. Bringing the dripping blade close to his own arm, he inspected it carefully. 

His bright amber eyes went dull. Tomoe's blood was a slightly lighter shade than that of the other warriors he had felled. It blended perfectly with the red tone of his Shifters skin. 

The shouts suddenly grew louder. Their hunters had found him. 

Kenshin drew in a sharp breath, shaking himself free of the memories. His hand rose to the scar on his cheek. It takes a lot to leave a visible scar on a Shifter. The fact that the scar was still there was evidence of just how deeply he had been wounded. His hand lowered again to pick at the hem of the bright fuchsia t-shirt the human girl had loaned him. Not his color of choice, but his own shirt was in shreds and this oversized woman's tee was the only thing the girl had that even came close to fitting him. He glanced at the girl out of the corner of his eye. She was staring at the road, shoulders and hands tense, studiously ignoring him. He sighed and let his hand drop to rest on the sword propped up against his seat. 

_"Protect her." _

 "I don't believe I ever got your name, Miss…?" Kaoru jumped, startled by the question and somewhat thrown off by the politeness of it. Her passenger had been acting like a complete jerk up until now, hardly speaking a word while they reloaded the truck, then falling into a moody silence after they had gotten underway. 

 "We were never properly introduced," he explained at her continued silence.

"It's Kaoru."

"Pleased to meet you, Miss Kaoru. I'm Kenshin."

"Yes, Mr. Seijuro told me your name. And you don't need the miss; just Kaoru is fine."

He nodded and looked away. Kaoru flinched mentally. _Weren't you the one just accusing him of being rude, you idiot? Now he's probably going to start brooding again. Dang it, this guy is creepy when he's quiet. _She hadn't expected the conversation to continue and so was slightly startled when, after a slight pause, he asked another question.

"Do you have a hair tie?" 

She blinked, trying to make the mental jump in response to the second unexpected question and topic. After the conversation suffered another awkward pause, she realized that he was looking at her expectantly, waiting for an answer. "Oh! Ah, there should be one in the door pocket." 

She watched out of her peripheral vision as he dug around in the pocket for a moment before finding a plain tie. Using his fingers as a makeshift brush, he pulled his hair up into a high ponytail.

The thick silence descended again.

~~~

No sane person would dare brave the streets of New Kyoto at night. Even the city's few well-lit areas were not protected from all of the many miscreants that prowled the night streets, looking for blood or other mischief. For anyone who knew Sanosuke Sagara, this danger alone would have explained why he was out in one of the darkest parts of the city. It would have explained why he was slightly out of breath, why he was running, and why there were spots of blood dotting his clothing, standing out in sharp contrast on the otherwise white material. However, it would not have explained the troubled light in his usually mischievous eyes, nor the nearly frantic body language that was so different than his eternally cocky manner. 

Sano's chase came to a stumbling halt as he reached an intersection. _Damn that woman! Where is she?_ His attention was caught by a faint meaty thud, immediately followed by chittering laughter to his right. He sprinted toward the sound, the knee-length material of his open vest billowing behind him. It took him mere seconds to find the source of the sounds, a swarm of creatures that looked like oversized bats with beady eyes and sharp little fangs. They were the scavengers of large cities, finishing the mischief that other, bigger villains started. The creatures were drawn to trouble like vultures to carnage. There were over a dozen of them, shrieking and laughing and hovering in a grotesque cloud around an unmoving, humanoid-sized form. The knot of dread grew in his stomach. His fears were confirmed as he finally caught a good view of the subject of their torment.

_Shit. _

He charged forward with a roar of fury, his fist connecting with the skull of the first creature he got to. The vile thing went flying into a wall. 

The shrieks rose in pitch as the semi-intelligent creatures left what they had been tormenting to come after this new quarry. The next creature flew at Sano, the knife in its gnarled claw glinting. He grabbed the thing by its wing and flung it into one of its comrades, the knife stabbing the second one in the chest. They crashed to the ground in a tangle of wings and flying blood. Sano grabbed the next two and bashed their heads together, letting them fall to the ground as well. 

Sanosuke snarled. He usually enjoyed a good fight, but enough things had gone wrong tonight that he was simply not in the mood. He hated these things. They were easily dispatched, but it took a while to get rid of them because they traveled in confusing swarms. He peered through worriedly through the mass of wings and claws toward the form that was now lying alone at the end of the alley. It was no longer being attacked, but it had not moved, either. A prick on his back alerted him to where one of the parasites had latched on to him with its claws. He reached around and snatched an ankle, tearing the thing loose. Another careened around behind him, managing to grab the dangling tails of his red headband. Within moments it had fallen to the ground, dead of a snapped spine. After a few more seconds that seemed like hours to the worried Sano, enough of the creatures lay dead to convince the few survivors to go find an easier meal. 

Sano could see the body lying unmoving at the end of the alley. Cursing fluently in a wide variety of languages, he ran up and knelt beside the still form, checking the neck for a pulse. Breathing a sigh of relief at the steady thump under his fingers, he tapped the face roughly. "Fox? Hey Megumi, wake up." No response. "Fox!" 

He had to get her out of here. He scooped her up, cradling her against his chest, this time cursing his own stupidity. The two of them had been heading home from an evening visit to one of Megumi's patients when a burly, scar-covered human man had stepped from a side alley and challenged him. Thinking he would be able to defeat the guy easily enough, Sano had told Megumi to wait behind him while he strode forward to give the brute a good beating. But as soon as the guy blocked his first punch with ease, Sano realized that the fight would not be over quite as quickly as he had expected. And when he had heard Megumi's scream and turned to see her being carried into an alley by a creature moving too fast to identify the species, he had not been able to get away from his opponent to help her. His fight continued on for several agonizing moments. It finally ended when Sano trapped one of his opponent's punches in his own hand and knocked him unconscious with a solid head-butt, getting some blood on himself from the guy's broken nose in the process. By that time, Megumi and her captor were long gone and he had spent several more frantic minutes searching the alleys before finally finding her. 

Megumi finally began stirring in his arms, fox-like ears twitching back and forth as she rose from the depths of unconsciousness. 

He didn't pause in his trek back home until a slender clawed hand reached around his shoulder to give a sharp tug on a tail of his red bandana. "You can put me down now, Rooster," her annoyed tone drifted up to him, the usually sultry purring of her voice lowered to a near growl. 

He finally slowed his long strides to grin down at her. "Hey, Fox. About time you woke up. Were you planning on sleeping out here the whole night?"

Pretty charcoal eyes glared up at him in annoyance. "Back off, Rooster. As I recall, a certain someone told me to wait behind him because 'this will only take a second'."

That elicited a wince. "It shouldn't have taken that long. And they cheated, having another guy hiding. Cowards, goin' after the woman like that…" He broke down into unintelligible grumbling for a moment before locking eyes with her, voice rising in anger. "Kuso, Megumi, you could've been hurt bad!" 

"I'm fine, Sano."

"Fine? You were unconscious, Fox."

"That little rat knocked me out right after he grabbed me. I didn't even get a chance to figure out what species he was. Now put me d-"

"How'd you know that it was a he then?"

Her expression split into a positively foxy smile, exposing two small canines. 

"Ah, never mind, I don't think I want to know," Sano balked. A sudden frown crossed his features. "He didn't do anything else to you, did he?"

Her smiles could turn into glares so fast it made his head spin. "I don't believe so, no thanks to you. Perhaps if you would put me down I could determine that for certain." 

He shrugged and lowered the arm holding her legs, letting her slide out of his embrace. As soon as she was on her feet she immediately began smoothing out her appearance with pristinely kept clawed fingers. She shook out her tail and hair, trying her best to get the dirt out of the soft fur and shiny black tresses. Sano couldn't resist. He reached out and tweaked one of the fuzzy rust colored ears that adorned her head, grinning as the ear flicked away automatically. "There somebody around you're trying to impress, Fox?" 

She jerked her attention away from checking the multiple hidden pockets of her doctors uniform, a sharp retort on her lips. It died as her hand closed around a slip of folded paper in one of the more obviously placed pockets. She rarely used those outer spaces because they were much too easy a target for pickpockets. She pulled her hand out of her clothing, frowning at the crinkled note. 

"Sano… I didn't have this before."

"Waddya mean, Fox?"

"I mean, you stupid Rooster, that I didn't put this here. Someone else did."

"The thug?"

"It would help explain why he didn't do anything -else- to me." 

"What's it say?"

She unfolded the crumpled scrap of paper. Her tail began pumping back and forth in confusion as she read the short letter. "Fox?" Sano's voice carried a hint of concern at her puzzled expression. She turned the note around and held it still as he read the terse note. 

_'Do not help the girl. Her ward will be ours.'_

His brow furrowed in confusion. "What the hell does that mean?" 

Chapter notes:

This is actually only about half of what I had intended to put in this chapter but I wanted to get this posted, so the other stuff will be coming in the next one. 

Just to make sure this is clear, Megumi is not human. I haven't quite decided on a name for her species yet (which I need to do, because several more characters will be this species- argh, make a decision, Sachi!) But if you're having trouble picturing the species, think Inuyasha with a fox or wolf-like tail. 

A big thank you to you wonderful reviewers!

Riverwood- Hehe, glad you like the Shifters, because there will be a lot more of them! (Kenshin _is _the main character, after all)

Unique-starfish- Thanks again for pointing out that problem with the chapter order. *smacks self* I'm glad you liked the chapter! Bummer about not being able to write until summer… I look forward to seeing you update then! 


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